When one party has a small majority, a strong majority leader is required so that a coalition holds together, especially for a contentious issue that most of the party constituency around the country supports. The fact is, nobody’s afraid of Senate Majority Leader O’Connell, and the evidence of that is the latest move by Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski.

Sen. Lisa Murkowski has assured an Alaska constituent that she’s committed to preserving Planned Parenthood funding as part of a health care bill — the strongest line she’s drawn yet over one of the most controversial elements of the Obamacare repeal effort.

“I am committed to ensuring that important provisions of the ACA, such as covering those with pre-existing conditions, continued support for Medicaid expansion, coverage for dependents and no lifetime limits, and funding for Planned Parenthood remain intact,” Murkowski wrote in the constituent letter obtained by POLITICO.

In the past, Murkowski has said publicly that she doesn’t think Planned Parenthood defunding should be part of the repeal effort. But she hasn’t said that she would automatically vote against a bill that included it.

Think about an alternate scenario involving the Democrats. If for example, the Democrats had a narrow majority in the Senate and wanted to reinstate funding for Planned Parenthood. Do you think a moderate Democratic Senator would dare to cross Harry Reid of Chuck Schumer?

What’s odd is that McConnell had no problem using complex Senate rules and maneuvers to embarrass Ted Cruz when he wanted but here’s Lisa Murkowski going against the GOP base (the real base, not the always angry Trump base) on a critical issue and doing it without any concern about repercussions.

The GOP is on a path to allow Planned Parenthood to get subsidized to the tune of $500 million in taxpayer money which allows them to charge less to carry out over 300,000 abortions a year.